The subject matter disclosed herein relates generally to sensor packages, and more particularly to sensor packages that employ devices electrically coupled together with connections independent of other connections in the sensor package.
Sensor packages that employ semiconductor devices are used in various applications because of their small and compact size. One example of such a sensor package is employed by tire pressure monitoring (“TPM”) systems, which employ sensors and sensor packages to monitor, among other things, the pressure in automotive tires. These systems provide a safety warning to alert the driver of low tire pressure. In addition, TPM systems can also provide to the driver other information (e.g., temperature, acceleration, and velocity), which may encourage proper maintenance of even tire pressure. This can result in many benefits, including better fuel economy and extended tire life.
Systems like the TPM systems discussed above typically employ a variety of components that sense, process, and transmit data to other systems, and generally to the driver. One component is a pressure sensor for sensing tire pressure, and providing data outputs indicative thereof. Another component is a processor such as an application specific integrated circuit (“ASIC”) that is responsive to these data outputs, as well as other data from other components. These components can be packaged together in the form of the sensor package, many of which are configured so they can be surface-mounted to other substrates, e.g., printed circuit boards.
It is often required that selection of the components is provided in a manner that maintains flexibility in the general function, operation, and configuration of the sensor package. It is likewise desirable that, while new configurations of the sensor package will come at reduce costs of materials, and manufacturing resources, there is no reduction in the level, and array of available functionality is realized in the new sensor package.
Certain types of sensor packages have incorporated these particular qualities into a relatively small, compact device. There are, for example, sensor packages that have a sensor device, and a processing device that are mounted to opposite sides of a substrate. While these two devices communicate via leads inside of sensor package, the devices are mounted on opposite sides of the substrate. Not only does this configuration act as a limiting factor in the size of the package, but it also requires longer interconnection distances between the devices, which can affect the performance, the functionality, and the flexibility of the sensor package.
Therefore, it would be advantageous to have a sensor package that can collect data and information, but that can also provide a platform for further changes and expansion of these functions. It would also likewise be advantageous for such sensor package to be configured to reduce mechanical stresses on particular areas of the package, and to provide access to the environment for data collection, but that also protects other areas of the package from the environment. Moreover, such sensor packages could still further be configured to employ minimal interconnection lengths between components, such as the interconnection lengths between the sensor devices and the processing devices.